Stretcher for embroidering



Jan, 20, 1925.

. f P. CANE STRETCHER FOR EMBROIDERING Filed Oct. '7, 1922 Patented Jan.20, 1925.

PIETRO CANE, OF: BROOKLYN, NEVI YORK.

srRE'rorInR ron. EMBROIDERING.

Application led ctober 7, 1922. Serial No. 592,960.

To all 1072021@ t may concern:

Be it known that I, PIETRO CANE, a citizen of the United States, andresident of New York city, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kingsand State of New York, have invented certain new and use fulImprovements in Stretchers for Embroidering, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention refers to improvements in implements for needlework, andespecially it applies to frames used for stretching woven'fabric to beembroidered.

To judge by the present state ofthe art, as itappears from common usage,there Vhas been ver little improvement attained from the commonsingleembroidering fra-me, consisting of aquadrangular nonadjustablewooden border or annular hoop on which the fabric is stretched `andfastened by :pins or nailsor any primitive manner to the more moderndouble chase or tambour frame, either one of which consists of a pair ofconcentric frames, the iirst kind of rectangular or square shape, theother of annular form. In either case these tWo frames closely fit oneinto the other, so that, when Va piece of cloth is spread over the inneror narrower frame, the outer frame can `be 'pressed over it until itlies Cflush with the inner one, stretching the cloth,- -whilebeingforced over, so that it presents a tightly drawn, drum-like surface onwhich'then the embroidering may proceed. The main drawbacks of thisclass of frames consist in the distortion to which in practise designthe fabric is subjected, and which is beyond the control of theoperator, not to mention the facility with which these frames separate,even before such parting is intended or desirable, and the consequentimpossibility to remount the fabric on the frame with exactly the samestrain in every direction as before,

`It is alsol known to the inventor that the principle of the adjustablestretcher frame7 consisting in the application of four sticks withslotted or perforated ends joined together by yremovable clamps or pegsinto a rectangle,- on whose sides the fabric is fastened by pins ornails, is old, and is, for example, utilized in the stretchers on whichwashed curtains are dried, but its unmodified application for thepurpose of'embroidering is also subject to similar criticism and that ofuneven straining of the fabric.

The first. object of this invention is to devise an apparatus forstretching fabric for embroidering purposes`I which is entirelycontrollable bv the hand of the operator. Another purpose is todistribute the strain evenly upon the warp and woof of the fabricwithout any distortion in a diagonal direction, in which the so-calledbias runs.

A third purpose is to avoid such distortion of the fabric as resultsfrom joining the fabric and stretching it at the same time, by a devicewhich separates these two operations.

A fourth object is to provide a` stretching frame which permits the evenand complete mountino and stretching of irregular or odd pieces,irrespective of their size.

A fifth object, collateral with the last mentioned, is to devise anembroidery frame in which the fabric to be operated upon does not haveto be fastened to the rigid border of the frame.

Other and minor objects will become evi-- dent from the description.

These various objectsare attained by the mechanism and arrangement ofparts shown inthe accompanying drawing, in which--` Fig. l shows a rearview of the en1- broideringframe, before the work piece is attached toit;

Fig. 2 shows the front or working side of the frame, with the workpieceattached to it, in an expanded condition;

Fig. 3 is asectional view through one of the press buttons by which thesegments of the back canvas are held together;V

Fig. L is an enlarged sectional view taken on line Ll, l of Fig. 2 andillustrating the details of one ofthe corner clamp.

The same numerals refer to identical parts throughout the differentviews.

The rigid part of the frame consists of' two pairs of beams or sticks ofrectangular section, preferably made of wood, one pair La A laid acrossthe other pair, in such way that the ends of one pair are superimposedupon those of the other pair, the ends at each corner overlapping theother beam, so that the combination form a rectangular fra-me, as thebeams l, 3 and 2, l in Fig. 1 show. Whether these beams should all be ofequal length and thus be best adapted to form a square, as in the caseillustrated, or whether they should be of two different lengths, thusforming an oblong rectangle, depends upon the special requirements ofthe work to be done. ln the majority of cases, an equilateral frame willbe found most advantageous.

The ends of the beams are slotted for a convenient length, as indicatedby the slots m, 1P; 2P, 2t; St 3 and ll Llm, so that threaded'bolts m,a, 29 and t can be inserted through the superimposed slots and, when athumb nut is applied to their threaded end and drawn tight they willclamp the two beam ends securely together. Fig. 4 shows one of thesecorner clamps in more detailed form. Underneath the head of the bolt, inthis case bolt m, which connects the beams l and 4l, respectively theirslotted portions 1m and 4km, as well as under the thumb nut m washers fmare inserted for distributing thepressure exerted over a larger area ofthe' beams.

It is evident that this arrangement, which is that of the adjustablestretcher frame, spoken of, allows to form rectangular frames of varyinglateral sizes, according to the available length of the slots.

On this border frame a canvas backing or cloth of suitable fabric isfastened, which is cut up into a plurality of segments along the middlelines and rectangle formed by the frame. This division, it will be seenfrom the illustration, results in four equal symmetrical pairs oftriangular pieces all of the same area and size, each adjoining pairsymmetrical on its dividing line and congruent when folded over thisline. See la, 1b; 2a, 2b; 3a, 3b; and 4ta, t". The sides of eachtriangle are formed respectively by half of one frame beam, half adiagonal and half of one middle line. The side adjoining the frame ispermanently fastened by nails, tacks or otherwise upon that side of theframebeam which rests upon or faces the cross beams. See 1d, 3d in Fig.l and 2d, 4d in Fig. 2.

The diagonal sides which in each case are marked by the addition ofsymbols f or f, as well as the sides adjoining the middle lines,characterized by the symbols e and e, added to the respective numeralsdesignating the sides, are hemmed and, when the frame is in its originalor unstretched condition, just butt against each other, or leave nosubstantial clearance between them. They all converge towards the center6 of the diagonals of the the frame and at this-.point a small lap whichmay be square or round, is provided which covers the pointed loose endsof allV the segments. Arranged in annular series between the lap and thesegment ends around the common center is a row of snap or press buttonsle, 2G,V 3 and le fastened with their sockets c and button members c(Fig. 3) to the segments and the lap respectively, so that when the lapis spread fittingly over the loose corners, by a gentle pressure all theloose ends can be tied together with the lap into a continuous sheet.

Only one segment7 for example la, is permanently fastened to the lap, asindicated by the seams 5a, and in this caseV the press button isdispensed with. This prevents the accidental lossrof the lap and at thesame time insures the proper placement of the lap over the othersegments, so that the fitting and buttoning is facilitated. Moreover,the slots 1m, 4m; 1P, 2p; 2t, St and 3, il are ,of just such depth, thatwhen the four beams are shoved together, so that the bolts m, p, t and aare pushed inward, as far as they will go, the segments are drawn tosuch a close that the press buttons are just in a position for readysnapping.

The operation and proper use of this frame is presently explained. Y

After all the segments are buttoned tiglul to the center lap, as justdescribed, the frame is turned over so that the lap is on the underside, and the piece to be embroidered, indi cated by 7, is laid out flatand unstretched upon the canvas 0r back cloth, taking care that the warpand the woofV of the fabric runs parallel to the frame beams. The biastlreads, if there are any, will run diagona y.

In this position the working piece is either pinned to the backing orVhemstitehed or basted to it, as indicated by seams 8.

Then the lap on the back is unbuttoned, so that the loose ends of thedierent segments can flap downwards, as far as the basting does not holdthem in the planeet the frame, if the latter is lifted from the table orother support. This is indicated by dotted lines 9, and the piece to beembroid ered is thereby laid bare and free on both sides. Now, with allfour corner clamp bolts loosened, the frame is spread apart in thedirection of the middle lines, as far as the fabric, basted to the loosesegments, will permit without overstraining, tightening and looseningthe corner bolts alternately, until the working piece lies evenly tautand without showingany crease or slack in either direction. Then thebolts are clamped per* manently tight in vtheir slots, and the workingpiece is ready to be embroidered.

As Fig. 2 indicates, the segments, in stretching, separate in diagonaldirections,

nii

that is, the hen-1s 2f, 3f; 3F, 4f, 4f, 1f and;

l Qf spread apart, parallel tov each. other., while the lie-ms o-n themiddle lines, markedA with the symbols. e and e, onlyV slightly spreadtoward Lthecenter. Thisv peculiar action is due to the permanentfastening of' the segments to the side beams in combina.- tion with theintentional splitting o-f lthe back cloth on the` lines indicated andhas a peculiar effect on the stretching of the fabric.

In any rectangle of the sides A and B, the diagonal C equals and in asquare of the side A the diagonal C equals Consequently it can easily beproven, that when a square is expanded in both a longitudinal andlateral direction, viz: in such manner that the resulting shape alwaysstays a square, the strain or elongation in all diagonal directions mustbe equal to the strain exerted parallel to the sides times 1/2, that is;about 1.414 times as great.

As a corollary it follows that when a square is expanded by a forcewhich would act from the center outwardly, with even pressure in allradial directions, the square will bulge out on the sides and tend toapproximate a circular circumference.

The first condition is that which happens when a continuous loose sheetis stretched over a square frame, drawing it evenly in two directions,parallel to the. sides and normal to each other. We will furthermoreassume that the woof and warp threads run also in these directions andare to be kept as nearly straight as' possible. This results inexcessive strain in a diagonal direction which has to be taken upI bythe bias threads: and partly also by the woof and warp threads,interwoven and coherent with them. In other words, the strain on `thecloth increases towards the corners.

The other condition would be ideal for the treatment and durability ofthe fabric, but would necessitate a distortion of the design to beembroidered.

It is therefore necessary in practise to compromise between the twoextremes, and this is done by the p-eculiar construction of the presentdevice. The parting of the canvas backing along the diagonals alleviatesthe strain on the bias and consequently distributes the total stra-in onthe fabric more evenly. A further consequence is that there is verylittle distortion of the design, especially towards the middle and thatthe woof and warp threads are kept respectively almost parallel to eachother. It is understood that the underlying' principles of the inventionwill allow various modification of execution, in practise and that, thedescription giiv'en, is illustrative rather than restrictive.

Having thus described my invention, what I claiin as new andE desire. toprotect by Letters Patent, is:

l. In; a frame for e ngibroidering, the combination with a pair ofstretcher beamsand means; to adjustablyand xedly hold them in parallelopposition; of two members, made of pliable material and fastenedrespectively at their outer portions to said stretcher beams andextending triangularly within the frame, said members at their innerportions extending freely within the space bounded by said beams, andmeans to temporarily connect the inner portions of said members to eachother to permit said members to be stretched while connected at theirinner portions when a piece of fabric is being attached thereto.

2. In a frame for embroidering, the combination with two pairs o-fstretcher beams, arranged normally to each other and means to adjustablyconnect them at their ends; of a. backing sheet supported and expandedbetween said stretcher beams, and comprising segment portions havingouter edges located along diagonal lines within the space bounded bysaid beams to hold a piece of fabric ibetwee-n them; in suspension, saidedges of portions diagonall f disposed within the frame coinciding, saidedges being arranged to separate in directions transverse to saiddiagonal lines to stretch said fabric and leave said portions free attheir ends opposing' the piece of fabric.

,y 3. In a fra-me for embroidering, the combination with two pairs ofstretcher beams, arranged at an angle to each other and means toadjustably connect them together; of a backing sheet comprisingtriangular portions, a pair of triangular portions having their basesattached to each of said beams and having their apices adapted to adjoinwithin the space between said beams, the outer edges of said portionsbeing disposed substantially diagonally to said frame, the diagonaledges of adjacent portions opposing one another to part in directionstransverse to such diagonals when the beams are adjusted laterally.

4. A frame for einbroidering as specified in claim 3 provided with-a lapto connect the apices of said portions, and means to detachably connectsaid lap to some of said portions.

5. In a frame for embnoidering, the combination with two pairs ofstretcher beams, arranged at an angle to each other and means toadjustably connect them at their ends; of a backing sheet comprising a,plurality of triangular portions, a pair of triangular portions havingtheir bases attached to each of said beams, said portions having inneradjacent edges substantially normal to the corresponding beam and havingouter adj aeent edges substantially dia-gonal to the frame, the diagonaledge of a portion on one beam opposing the diagonal edge of an adjacentportion on an adj ac-ent beam, the apiees of said triangular portionsextending freely Within the frame toward its mid-portion, in proximityto one another, said portions being adapted to sep- 10 arate on linesnormal and diagonal to said frame When the beams are adj ustedlaterally.

6. A frame for embroidering as specified in claim 5 provided Witli a lapto connect the apiees of portions, and means to de l5 taoliably connectsaid lap to some of said portions.

' PIETRO GANE.

